Michael Burry Blames Nvidia 'Mafia-Like' Behaviour For OpenAI Oracle Deal Collapse

The global technology sector is locked in a high-stakes race to dominate the artificial intelligence industry. Companies are investing billions of dollars into massive data centres and specialised hardware. This intense competition has placed the strategic alliances between Nvidia, OpenAI, and Oracle under significant scrutiny.

Pertinently, legendary investor Michael Burry recently accused Nvidia of engaging in anti-competitive behaviour to block rival AMD from a major AI infrastructure project.

The 'Big Short' investor claimed on 10 March 2026 that Nvidia used its market dominance to stifle competition after a planned data centre expansion between OpenAI and Oracle in Abilene, Texas, reportedly collapsed. Burry alleged that Nvidia paid a $150 million (£117m) deposit to a site developer specifically to prevent Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) from securing the hardware contract. He described the move as 'mafia-like' and called for a formal antitrust investigation into the semiconductor giant.

His words stoked concerns about competition and power in the semiconductor market, especially as demand for advanced AI chips continues to surge and technology companies rush to secure the computing infrastructure needed for the next generation of AI systems.

'Nvidia Influenced OpenAI-Oracle Partnership'

The controversy stems from a planned data centre collaboration tied to the massive AI infrastructure project known as Stargate, a joint venture involving OpenAI, Oracle, and other investors aiming to build large-scale AI computing facilities in the United States. The initiative, which could eventually involve hundreds of billions of dollars in investment, is designed to support the rapid growth of artificial intelligence development and deployment.

According to Burry, the agreement ran into trouble after OpenAI reconsidered the facility's hardware architecture. The data centre had reportedly been planned around Nvidia's Blackwell chip infrastructure, which Oracle had already begun preparing to support. However, OpenAI allegedly shifted its interest towards Nvidia's next-generation Vera Rubin chips instead, which would require a different type of system buildout.

Burry argued that this change effectively derailed the project and placed Oracle in a difficult position, especially after the company had already committed resources to the Blackwell-based infrastructure. He claimed that the situation worsened when Nvidia allegedly intervened financially, preventing rival chipmaker AMD from becoming involved in the project.

The investor suggested that Nvidia paid roughly $150 million to block AMD's participation, a move he characterised as 'mafia-like' behaviour and one that he believes could warrant antitrust scrutiny.

While these claims remain unverified, they have attracted attention because of Nvidia's immense influence in the AI hardware market. The company has become the dominant supplier of graphics processing units used to train and run modern AI models, giving it significant leverage across the industry.

AI Infrastructure Race Raises Concern

Burry's comments highlight a broader concern within the technology sector about how concentrated the AI chip market has become. NVIDIA's dominance has been driven by the explosive growth of artificial intelligence applications, with companies competing to secure access to its specialised processors.

These chips power the massive data centres used to train large language models and other advanced AI systems. As demand has surged, technology firms have been forced to commit extraordinary sums to build infrastructure capable of supporting these workloads. In some cases, companies are investing tens or even hundreds of billions of dollars in computing capacity over the coming decade.

Projects like Stargate illustrate the scale of this transformation. The venture aims to build one of the largest AI infrastructure networks in the world, with plans to invest up to $500 billion in computing facilities by the end of the decade. Such projects depend heavily on the availability of advanced semiconductors, making chip suppliers a central pillar of the AI economy.

This dependency can also create worries about competition and potential market imbalances. NVIDIA's position at the centre of the AI boom has enabled it to shape the industry's direction, while rivals such as AMD and Intel seek to close the gap with competing chips.